Evidence is presented to suggest that ethanol has a thermic effect (SDA). In a 10-day feeding trial, rats receiving 16 % of their energy intake as ethanol produced 15 % more thermic energy than control animals with an equal energy intake. Conflicting reports in the literature on the effect of alcohol on oxygen consumption in man have been resolved by taking into account the influence of food. Whisky (200 kcal) has no effect on fasting metabolic rate in man but when taken with a meal it produces a 22-percent increase in oxygen consumption, which is significantly greater than the 13-percent increase caused by consuming an iso-caloric, nonalcoholic meal.